


Die Laughing

by minkeys



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: M/M, Single Dad Mingyu, Teacher Jeonghan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-11
Updated: 2017-02-11
Packaged: 2018-09-23 15:44:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9664028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minkeys/pseuds/minkeys
Summary: "A refreshing moment of  breathlessness and exhaustion with colors more vivid and everything sparkling; everything is renewed."orMingyu is a single dad just trying to do right by his daughter and Jeonghan is really cute.





	1. Fall

**Author's Note:**

> i know exactly 2 (two) things abt svt:  
> 1\. my friend robin loves them  
> 2\. gyuhan is underrated
> 
> so i, a person who knows very little abt svt, decided to write this beast anyways lmao so enjoy

Mingyu has never thought of himself as a particularly active person. He stays in shape as much as someone his age should, but he’s never wanted to be the type of person who spends all their time at the gym.

As he chases his currently naked 7 year old daughter around the house, out of breath, he really wants to have a word with his former self.

“Baby, why won’t you put your clothes on? What happened to my big girl,” he calls from outside her closet where she’s currently hiding from him.

Mingyu is confused because it’s not even the first day so there’s no reason for Minjung to be acting this way.

He says as much and gets an impressively loud sigh before his daughter pops her head out of the closet and talks to him as if he’s stupid, “I know that daddy, it’s because of Jeonghan oppa!”

“Jeonghan… _oppa_?” Mingyu is honestly shocked that his baby girl is calling someone oppa, she’s too young for this, shouldn’t she be at least in 6 th grade before she starts liking people?

 _Oh shit,_ he thinks, _this is my fault, I must have raised her weird and now she’s been romantically awakened at such a young age! I didn’t even start to like boys until I was 18, why is she starting so early? And with this “Jeonghan oppa” no less!_

At minute 3 of Mingyu’s internal battle, he remembers his daughter talking about her new teacher at dinner last night.

Yoon Jeonghan.

“Jeonghan oppa” is her teacher.

Slowly, he opens the closet door and reaches in to hand Minjung his pajama t-shirt since she won’t put her clothes on at the moment. The morning might be off to a slow start but that’s no reason for her to get sick over it.

“Minnie Mouse,” he tries slowly. His daughter has yet to outgrow her nickname, so he’s hoping it’s enough to lure her out of the closet. At least that way he can hold his baby while she gushes about this oppa of hers.

Seeing Minjung positively swimming in Mingyu’s worn out sleep shirt causes his heart to clench in his chest. Pulling her against his chest feels like second nature at this point, and she folds right into him as if she’s been waiting for this all morning.

“So,” he begins, smoothing her hair back, “Tell me some more about this Jeonghan oppa, hmm?”

He figures that they won’t be able to get ready unless he gets to the root of this problem as soon as possible.

“Well,” she blushes, “he’s really funny and smart. He has a bunch of books and his socks always match and he smells good even though everyone else in my class smells like a bunch of boogers,” she giggles.

“Wow,” Mingyu gasps, “He doesn’t smell like boogers?”

Minjung laughs and shakes her head.

“Well I can see why you like him then. So why don’t you want to get dressed? Don’t you want to look your best for your Jeonghan oppa?”

She ducks her head again and mumbles something against his chest that he can’t make out. Mingyu asks her to repeat it and her face turns even redder. He pushes the hair from her forehead and urges her to repeat it.

“It’s okay baby,” he reassures, “you can tell Daddy anything, I promise.”

Minjung inhales and shouts, “He’s so _pretty_! You saw him yesterday Daddy, wasn’t he the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen?”

“I wasn’t really paying much attention to him yesterday, but I’m pretty sure that _you’re_ the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen,” he answers honestly.

Minjung looks offended and vigorously shakes her head.

“No Daddy! Jeonghan oppa is _so_ pretty! He has this really long hair and he keeps it up so it doesn’t get glue or boogers in it but he let it down yesterday after school and I thought it was so pretty so I asked if I could touch it and he said yes and it was so soft!”

Mingyu wants to laugh at his daughter’s outburst but can tell how sincere she is, so he simply nods his head in agreement.

“In that case,” he says as he carries her to the bathroom, “We’re going to have to make your hair just as pretty as his.”

Minjung giggles happily because if there’s one skill Mingyu has picked up in his years of fatherhood, it’s how to braid hair.

His daughter has always been an active child and keeping her hair from tangling throughout the day was his biggest challenge since she learned how to walk. He hated having to sit her down at the end of the day before bath time to try and gently work the knots out of her hair. Minjung cried and Mingyu’s heart just broke seeing his baby girl in such pain. The finger cramps that come from weaving in the more intricate braids are all worth it so that they never have to go through that again.

(Plus, when Minjung takes the braids out at the end of the day, her long hair is perfectly waved and she gets to play mermaid in the bath. Really, it’s a win-win-win situation.)

Minjung brushes her teeth while Mingyu works diligently on an Elsa braid. He’s glad he got breakfast in them both before this clothing crisis hit, otherwise there wouldn’t be enough time to get dressed and get something to eat. Plus he can’t imagine the tantrum that would follow if Minjung got food on her clothes.

The second time around, Minjung is much more receptive to getting into her school clothes and Mingyu internally sighs in relief.

After making sure her hair is up to par for her Jeonghan oppa, he grabs her backpack and his keys and they head to the car.

Minjung begins chattering excitedly the closer they get to school, and for a minute Mingyu forgets that his daughter is already 7 and that her teacher is likely her first crush. He looks back at her through the rear view mirror and sees his baby all grown up for the first time.

He clears his throat around the sudden lump in it and tells Minjung to stop kicking the back of the car seat.

She looks annoyed at being chastised, but Mingyu now has a new weapon up his sleeve and he is not beneath playing dirty.

“Come on Minjung, you wouldn’t want Jeonghan oppa to find out that you’re a bad girl that kicks car seats even after her daddy tells her not to, do you?”

Minjung completely stills after that.

_Well damn, thanks Jeonghan._

 As Mingyu pulls into the parent parking lot, he sees Minjung absolutely itching to get out of the car. By the time he grabs her backpack and unbuckles her seatbelt, she’s practically vibrating in her seat. The second Mingyu takes her out of the car and locks it up; she runs full speed to her class.

“Kim Minjung!” he cries out, “What have I told you about running away when there are cars around?”

He sees her completely ignoring him as she stands next to a young man with long chestnut hair dressed smartly, right down to the matching socks. Mingyu’s momentary anger at Minjung’s great escape fades away as he sees his daughter already talking Jeonghan’s ear off.

“Ah,” he says as he walks up to Minjung’s class with her backpack in hand, “You must be her teacher; it’s nice to meet you Mr. Yoon.”

“Oh gosh,” he groans, “Please, Jeonghan is fine.”

“Well Jeonghan, my daughter was very excited to come to school today, so I’m sure you’ll take good care of her,” he says as he gives his daughter her backpack and leans down for a goodbye kiss.

“Yes,” Jeonghan smiles, “your daughter is a delightful addition to this class, I’ll take good care of her. Now say goodbye Minjung, it’s almost time for class to start.”

Minjung gives her father a loud _smeck_ right on the check and turns to walk into class.

“I’ll see you after school, Daddy,” she calls.

“Be good today, okay?” he looks up to see Jeonghan giving him a strange look, which he quickly changes as soon as he sees Mingyu looking back at him.

The two wave once to each other and Mingyu walks back to the car, not driving away until he sees the class door close.

He immediately drops his head to the steering wheel and lets out a distressed cry.

“She was so right,” Mingyu admits, “He is _so pretty._ ”

~

As Mingyu flips the sign on the door to “CLOSED,” he heads to the back of the store for his lunch break and takes a minute to think about Jeonghan.

There’s no denying that he is an absolutely beautiful man. He’s got the sharp feminine features that must get him countless dates, but he also looks so strong, like he takes no shit from anybody. Mingyu wonders what Jeonghan would look like underneath his nice clothes. Would he be soft and pliable or lithe and muscular? Either way, Mingyu doesn’t mind. He’d love to see either.

It’s at that moment that he realizes he’s having these thoughts about his 7 year old daughter’s teacher and he immediately shakes his head, desperate to get rid of these thoughts as quickly as possible.

 _It’s_ _just_ _inappropriate_ , he reasons. _Jeonghan is my daughter’s teacher and there’s no way a relationship with him would be a good idea. I must just be horny and projecting my desires on Jeonghan. He doesn’t deserve that! Oh God, I’m such a creep! Plus, just because he looks feminine doesn’t mean he’s interested in men. That’s just gross stereotypes based on heteronormative ideals of what homosexuality in men looks like and I’m better than that-_

He is once again startled out of his internal monologue by his alarm going off on his phone, reminding him that his lunch break is almost up. Shocked at how he managed to take up half an hour just thinking of Jeonghan, he quickly downs the rest of his lunch and reopens the store.

_Alright Mingyu, just focus for the rest of your shift and it’ll be okay. Just stop thinking about him and get to work; you need to put food on the table!_

Mingyu sighs as his thoughts run away from him again. Thank god he’s his own boss and can’t get fired for daydreaming.

Really, he should be ashamed.

He isn’t, but he should be.

~

On the way back to school at 3:30, Mingyu spends a good 5 minutes staring at himself in the small mirror on his visor, making sure his teeth are clean, that his nose is clear, and that his hair looks good. These are all the things he checks Minjung for before she leaves the house, but it wouldn’t hurt him to do it every once in a while as well. There would be nothing worse than flashing Jeonghan a smile and having a chunk of food lodged in between his teeth. _Blech._

Once he decides he looks as good as it’s going to get without making it look obvious, he leaves his car when a rush of parents has subsided so he can have a moment to actually speak with Jeonghan.

When Minjung sees him from across the parking lot, she almost runs towards him but Jeonghan seems to have caught on to her penchant for running in crowded parking lots from this morning. He grabs her before her little feet manage to touch the ground.

“I believe we had a conversation about something like this earlier this morning, did we not?” he asks.

Mingyu just laughs as he walks up and sees his daughter looking positively disgruntled at being apprehended.

Embarrassed, Minjung tries to defend herself, “I _know_ we did but I was just excited to see my Daddy! You can’t blame me for that,” She then turns her pouty face towards Jeonghan, trying to wiggle out of his grasp now that her father is close enough.

Jeonghan just smiles and lightly says, “No I completely agree; I would be excited to see your daddy too.”

And then he does the strangest thing.

Jeonghan winks at him

Jeonghan _winks. At Mingyu._ In front of his daughter.

Mingyu freezes as he takes Minjung into his arms.

_Did he just-? At me?_

Mingyu, the absolute charmer that he is, lets out the ugliest laugh-snort. It would have been less obvious if there were more people milling around but it seems that Minjung was one of the last kids to be picked up, so his laugh just carries throughout the emptying parking lot. He tries to pass it off as a cough and desperately tries to save face, but it seems the damage has been done. He’s become the weird snorting dad that’s creeping on the hot second grade teacher.

His hands begin to sweat and blames every single deity from every single religion that has ever existed that he’s so fucking _awkward,_ Jesus H. Christ! He might as well wear a shirt that says “I have no idea how to act around pretty people, please don’t call the cops.”

In the seconds following, Mingyu wonders if it’s too late to transfer Minjung to a new school. She’s a smart girl; she’ll be able to catch up soon. Before Mingyu can try and calculate how far his house is from the neighboring school, he hears Jeonghan let out an equally ugly laugh. Mingyu looks up to see Jeonghan wheezing, clutching his sides and his stomach drops.

“Oh god,” Jeonghan says in between gasps of breath, “I’m so sorry. Oh god I must look like such an ass!” Another gasp, “I don’t mean to laugh, but that was the most precious thing I’ve seen in a long time.”

“Oh,” Mingyu replies dumbly.

Seeing Jeonghan laugh makes Minjung laugh and Mingyu can’t stay upset seeing his baby girl pink faced and giggly. Soon enough, all three of them are laughing like lunatics in the empty parking lot.

“See?” Minjung whispers, “I told you he was funny!”

Mingyu can only nod and smile, too out of breath for a real response.

Unfortunately, the laughter dies down after a while and Jeonghan has to head back to his classroom to clean up and get home as it’s nearing sundown.

Mingyu and Minjung both say their goodbyes and Minjung calls out, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jeonghan oppa!”

Mingyu, feeling bold, teasingly repeats her, saying, “Yes, see you tomorrow morning Jeonghan oppa.”

He walks away without looking for Jeonghan’s reaction, too afraid that it might be negative.

What he doesn’t see, however, is Jeonghan blushing from his hairline all the way down and pulling out his phone to desperately text a friend.

~

**To: Joshua <3**

pls help I am so gay

**From: Joshua <3**

Well I would hope so otherwise all that sex we had in high school would be really awkward

**To: Joshua <3**

fucck you

have alcohol ready im on my way over

plus it was already awkward we were 16 and both bottoms what did you expect dumbass


	2. Winter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy backstory

As the months pass, Minjung continues excelling in school.

Mingyu can’t help but feel proud that his daughter is so smart.

He remembers the hours that he spent watching over Minjung in her crib when she was barely a week old. Seeing such a frail, tiny baby dependent completely on him instilled in Mingyu the strength to do anything he could to help her succeed.

Granted, there wasn’t much he could do at 18. Mingyu knew that, so he worked his hardest at everything he could do.

He found a job at a local bookstore and worked there every hour he wasn’t at school. The owner, Miss Kim, was an old woman sympathetic towards Mingyu’s struggles who offered to watch Minjung during Mingyu’s shift.

It turned out that her mother was a single parent as well and she had never been able to repay her for all the sacrifices she made. Her helping Mingyu was her way of giving back to someone who needed help just like her mother did.

Mingyu broke down in tears when Miss Kim (“Call me Sooyeon, please.”) told him he wouldn’t have to leave his baby with his parents until all hours of the night. She volunteered to watch Minjung in the upstairs office where she spent most of her day. Sooyeon read to her, fed her the formula Mingyu brought with her, changed her, and most importantly, loved her.

Mingyu was still beyond grateful to his parents for allowing him to live with them until he saved up enough money to get a small apartment for himself and Minjung. The fact that they hadn’t completely disowned him after finding out he got a girl pregnant at 17 was more than Mingyu could ever have expected. When they volunteered to watch their granddaughter while Mingyu worked, he thought he was dreaming.

However, his parents had already raised one baby; he didn’t want them to have to carry the burden of raising another one, especially at their age. Plus, he missed his daughter every moment he was away from her.

His hours were spent at school in the mornings, dropping his daughter off at his university’s daycare, and picking her up after class was over. He then had to rush home in his hunk of junk car (that he only bought because it was car seat accessible) to drop Minjung off before jetting to his job where he stayed from 4 p.m. to close at 11:30.

To say Mingyu was exhausted was an understatement. He was drained, emotionally and physically.

The only thing that kept him from bursting into tears every night was looking at his daughter’s smiling face. She fortified him, kept him from losing his mind. Knowing she would be upstairs with Sooyeon set his mind at ease. She was fed and cared for by someone who knew what Mingyu was going through. He was able to work on his homework throughout his shift and even pop up to see his daughter during the really slow times.

By the time Mingyu graduated with a degree in business, Minjung was already walking and talking. Or rather, running and shouting. She managed to inherit all of Mingyu’s charm, and an energy that was almost inhuman.

His mother informed him that he was just the same as a baby and that he should be grateful for what his parents had to go through.

Of course, what goes up must come down. Mingyu experienced too many ups, so life dragged him right back down to earth.

One day when Mingyu came into work, he saw Sooyeon sitting at the front desk where he works, almost like she was waiting for him. She smiled as Minjung wiggled out of Mingyu’s arms to give her a hug and kiss. She held his daughter close like she would never see her again, even though they just saw her yesterday. Mingyu could sense that something was wrong and asks Minjung to go upstairs to play. Minjung, not sensing the tension in the room, happily obliged and dragged her backpack up the stairs.

Sooyeon waited until she heard the office door open and close before she pulled Mingyu into one of the couches she had towards the back of the store where people could read in peace and quiet. With tears in her eyes, she informed Mingyu that she had gone to the doctor and been informed that she had stage four stomach cancer, and that it had begun to spread to her colon. She wasn’t expected to live past the end of the month.

Mingyu’s heart broke that day.

The woman that loved and cared for both Minjung and he as if they were her own family was going to die and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Against his own will, he began to cry.

Sooyeon allowed Mingyu to cry until he no longer could, then wiped his tears and reminded him that he needed to keep a brave face for Minjung’s sake. She then reached into a box on the floor next to her chair and pulled out a binder of paperwork. Mingyu recognized it as the books she kept for her store. She slid the binder to him and handed him a pen, motioning for him to sign one of the documents. Upon further inspection, Mingyu realized it was a legal contract signifying a change of ownership.

She was giving it to him. She was giving Mingyu her bookstore.

Mingyu remembered hearing stories of how Sooyeon’s mother always dreamed of owning a bookstore of her own where she could read to her child all day. She never achieved that dream for herself, but Sooyeon carried on her mother’s wishes. She bought a run-down building and transformed it into a soft but strong oasis where people could come in and forget about the outside world. It was her pride and joy. And she wanted to give it to Mingyu.

Mingyu refused, telling her there was no way he could run a store; he didn’t know the first thing about being a business owner.

Sooyeon kindly reminded him of the years he spent in college earning his business degree and how she knew there was nobody more qualified for the job than him.

“Furthermore,” she added, “I have no family. I never had the desire to extend my genetic line. I find the entire concept of reproduction unbelievably selfish. Childbirth is just the heterosexual’s way of trying to imprint their legacy on another human being. Present company excluded, obviously.” Mingyu lets out a watery laugh at that.

Sooyeon continues, “I thought I would die alone, and I came to peace with that. In fact, I began to look forward to it. I anticipated finally being free and able to walk out of this world with no regrets or fears. Then one day a gangly kid that was too tall for his own good came in here in what he clearly thought were his best clothes with a baby on his hip to drop off an application.” Mingyu dropped his head as the tears began to fall faster than he could wipe them away.

“I could tell that he’d been at it all day, the baby was beginning to fuss and he looked like he could pass out any second. I invited that boy in for a cup of tea and within 2 minutes I knew the job was his. Throughout the entire interview, he never once let go of that baby, even when she began fussing. He just stood up and bounced her on his hip until she fell into a light sleep. I knew he would do anything for that child.

“What I didn’t know was that I would grow to love them both more than I ever thought I could love another person. I’m quite upset at them both, as a matter of fact. I’ve always known I was sick, but I thought I could handle it. And even if I couldn’t, it wouldn’t affect anybody. With nobody to call a family, my death wouldn’t hurt anybody. I could simply fade out of existence and nobody would ever know I was here. But that gangly kid and his fussy baby wormed their way into my heart and now I don’t want to fade out. I want to stay and see them grow. I want them to know that I love them with all my heart and that I will always be with them. And I want that gangly teen to swallow his pride and take my goddamn book store.”

So he did.

He signed and became the official owner of his own small business.

The family business.

When Sooyeon died on a hot summer night, the sky opened up and rained for a whole week. Summer rain wasn’t a rare occurrence, but Mingyu knew it was Sooyeon. He knew that this was her way of saying goodbye, by reminding Mingyu that she was all around him and that she would never leave him or Minjung.

As Minjung grew, Mingyu made sure she remembered her third grandmother, the one who read to her every day and sang to her every night. Pictures were hung of her all around Mingyu’s home and the bookstore, and every time Mingyu saw them he would touch his heart in remembrance.

_To the woman who gave us everything she had._

Mingyu shakes himself out of that memory, wiping away a tear as he does.

The pain never lessens; he misses Sooyeon every day. He misses her laugh, her smell, and her no-nonsense sense of humor. She would have loved Jeonghan, Mingyu thinks. She always did love pretty boys and Jeonghan is the prettiest as far as Mingyu and Minjung are concerned.

Mingyu wishes he could introduce the two, but he can’t. He’s too scared to ask Jeonghan for the time of day, much less if he’d like to get dinner together and not-so-subtly mention how much his own dead mother figure would have loved him.

As he looks up at a picture of Sooyeon holding a sleeping Minjung hanging up in his kitchen, he thinks of what she would tell him.

 _Do you like him?_ he hears her ask.

 _Yes,_ he thinks _, I really do. And I think he likes me too._

 _That’s not important,_ she says _. What’s important is that Minjung likes him and that he likes Minjung._

_Minjung adores him and you know that nobody can resist our girl. She’s grown up so well. You would be so proud._

_I already am,_ she smiles _. Now it’s time for you to be happy too. It’s all I’ve ever wanted. And if this man will make you both happy, then you have my blessing._

Mingyu breathes a sigh of relief and continues chopping up the vegetables for stir fried rice, Sooyeon’s favorite.

 _I guess there’s only one person left to ask,_ he thinks as he looks at his daughter hard at work on a book at the dinner table.


	3. Spring

Mingyu waits until Minjung has tired herself down and is ready for bed.

“Daddy,” she begs, “one more story? Please?”

_Well, here’s my shot._

“Alright, sweet pea, just one more, okay?”

Minjung quickly nods, surprised that her pleading actually worked.

“Well, once upon a time, there was a beautiful fairy that was loved by all she met.”

Minjung giggles as Mingyu pokes her stomach.

“She was a kind and loving fae who spent all her time reading spell books in order to get stronger. One day she ran out of spell books and sent a letter to the nearest kingdom to get ask if they could lend her some of their books. Her handsome fairy father told her to-,”

“Daddy, you’re not a fairy!” she cries.

“Oh? Then what am I?” he asks.

“Obviously you’re a giant,” she laughs. Mingyu just sticks his tongue out and continues.

“So the fairy and her handsome giant father await the response of the prince. One day, when the fairy is brushing her long hair, she hears a knock at the door. She opens it and meets the prince. He’s the most beautiful human in the entire kingdom. He has long, flowing hair and doesn’t smell like troll boogers! The fairy asks if he will allow her to use his library. The prince, being a kind man, says yes, under one condition,” He pauses to see if Minjung is still awake.

“Don’t stop now, daddy! What happens next? What does he want?”

“The prince asks if he can join the fairy and her father for dinner that night,” Mingyu’s voice gets soft as he continues, “You see, the prince is very lonely in the big castle and he wishes he had a family that he could spend his time with.”

Minjung reaches for his hand.

“Well the fairy says yes, so the prince stays. At first, he only stays for one night, but then he stays for another night, and another, and another until it’s been months since the prince has gone home. One day he sadly tells the fairy and her father that he has to return to his kingdom and that he won’t be able to come back.”

“No,” Minjung cries, “he doesn’t get to leave!”

“It’s alright, sweetie,” he murmurs as he pulls Minjung into his chest, “Because the beautiful prince asks the fairy and her father to live with him. He wants them to live in the palace with him so they can be a family.”

He takes a deep breath as he asks, “Except the father doesn’t know if his daughter would be happy living with the prince. It’s always just been the two of them by themselves. He doesn’t want his daughter to feel like her father loves he prince more than her, but he feels a little lonely too. Do you think the fairy would be happy with the prince, Minjung?”

Minjung crawls into his lap and looks him dead in the eyes as she says, “Daddy, do you like my Jeonghan oppa?”

Nervously, he replies, “Yes, sweetheart. I think I do. Is that okay with you?”

“So…I would have two dads?”

“Well for now Jeonghan and I would just be good friends, but maybe in a few years that might happen.”

“You two can be best friends, but you can’t marry him,” she says as she crosses her arms.

Mingyu feels his heart sink, but nods his head.

“You can’t marry him because I’m gonna marry him! And you can’t take my oppa from me,” she laughs.

Mingyu shakes his head and asks, "Are you saying you would be okay if I started seeing your teacher?”

“Yeah,” she shrugs, “as long as I get more smooches than he does I don’t mind.”

“I think that can be arranged,” he laughs as he pulls Minjung in and plants a wet kiss on her face which sends her into a giggling fit that lasts way past her bedtime.

By the time she’s finally down for the count, Mingyu says a small prayer of thanks that it’s Friday night and Minjung doesn’t have school tomorrow.

Mingyu lies in his bed and gets hit with a startling realization that keeps him up the rest of the night.

 _Oh god,_ he thinks, _now I actually have to ask him out. Fuck._

~

Mingyu has never been good around people he finds attractive. It’s a wonder that he managed to charm a girl long enough to get her pregnant, but that’s another story.

He stands outside his car in the parking lot, waiting for Minjung’s class to end for the day. He took the afternoon off to get dressed up in preparation for actually asking Jeonghan out to dinner.

In hindsight, the tie might be overkill, but Mingyu has never been one to do things half-assed. If he’s going to court Jeonghan, he’s going to do it right. He wants Jeonghan to know that this isn’t just a sex thing or a momentary fling. Mingyu really likes him.

The bell startles Mingyu out of his thoughts and the school ground comes back to life as the older children rush out of their classrooms. He waits until he sees Minjung and Jeonghan and slowly makes his way over.

_Be cool, Mingyu. You got this. Don’t forget to breathe!_

Minjung, ever the wing woman, shouts to Mingyu as soon as she sees him.

“Wow daddy, you look so handsome! Doesn’t he look _handsome_ Jeonghan oppa?”

_Nice to know she inherited Mingyu’s charm._

Jeonghan looks surprised, but just laughs in the way that makes Mingyu feel positively warm all over.

“He does look very handsome, Minjung. What’s with the outfit?” he asks. “Hot date tonight?”

_God I hope._

“Actually,” Mingyu clears his throat, “Minjung, why don’t you go get your backpack from the class for a moment while I talk with Jeonghan, huh?”

Minjung pouts as she drags her feet back to the classroom. Clearly, she was hoping to see the beginning of the love story between her father and Jeonghan oppa, but there are some things she shouldn’t see; her father possibly getting rejected is one of them.

Once he’s sure Minjung is far out of ear shot, he takes a deep breath and steps toward Jeonghan.

“Well, Jeonghan. I think you’re a great guy and I really like you. I hope this isn’t too forward but I was hoping that maybe we could get dinner? Together? Just the two of us? Like…a date?”

The sweat collects on the back of Mingyu’s neck as he awaits Jeonghan’s response.

“Mingyu, that’s very kind of you to ask, but I don’t think a relationship with you would be a good idea while I’m still teaching your daughter.”

Mingyu tries to hide his disappointment, but clearly fails. He lowers his head and begins to apologize for making the situation uncomfortable when he feels Jeonghan’s hand on his shoulder.

“I don’t date parents of my students,” he repeats, “so ask me again in two weeks when Minjung is out for summer break.”

Mingyu’s head pops up so fast he thinks he might have broken something just to see Jeonghan softly smiling at him.

“I really like you Mingyu. I think you’re a great father and your daughter adores you. I would love to go out with you, two weeks from next Friday. Here, hand me your phone,” he holds his phone out and Mingyu quickly reaches in his pocket to trade phones.

“I’ll be waiting for your call,” Jeonghan smirks.

The ride home is filled with Minjung’s constant questioning, but Mingyu doesn’t mind in the slightest. Nothing can get his mood down, not even Minjung’s little feet kicking at the back of the seat.

He has a _date._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that took long enough jfc


	4. Summer

“Kim Minjung,” he yells, “If you don’t get upstairs and start packing immediately, I’m going to leave without you tomorrow morning. Jeonghan and I will go to the beach by ourselves and I’ll drop you off at grandma and grandpa’s house for the summer, don’t think I won’t!”

He hears a loud groan as the TV is switched off and smiles at the sound of feet slapping against the hardwood floor.

“That’s more like it,” he whispers.

The whole beach trip was Jeonghan’s idea. His friend Joshua has a summer house out by the beach that he usually spends all of July hiding away in, but decided not to go this year. Not wanting it to go to waste, he suggested Jeonghan take the most of it. When Jeonghan proposed the idea to Mingyu and Minjung, it was a unanimous yes.

Spending an entire month with his boyfriend and his daughter by the beach? It was like someone ripped a page out of Mingyu’s childhood diary.

Not that he had a diary, but you know.

_Ahem._

Jeonghan is due to come over in a few minutes, in fact. He’s been staying at Mingyu’s place more and more often since school ended for vacation.

At first, they were too nervous to do much of anything romantic because of the fact that they only met because of Minjung. Thankfully, the awkwardness faded away when Mingyu realized that Jeonghan truly cared about his daughter and would never do anything to make Mingyu’s relationship with her strained.

From then on out, they just clicked.

He hears someone shuffling with keys outside the door and wonders if Jeonghan can remember which key is to this house.

Some might say they were moving fast, but Mingyu can’t bring himself to care when he looks at Jeonghan’s smiling face.

“Welcome home,” he smiles as he takes one of the bags from Jeonghan’s arms so he can easily wheel in his suitcase.

Jeonghan walks right to the living room that Minjung just vacated and collapses on the couch.

“Do we have to go to the beach?” he whines. “I’m sure Minjung would love a day trip to the aquarium. At least then I won’t have to carry all these bags! Or maybe we could just go for a weekend, not a whole month.”

Mingyu just leans over the back of the couch to press a kiss on Jeonghan’s forehead before taking his boyfriend’s luggage to the car.

“You know,” he calls out, “as I remember, you’re the one who suggested we spend the month up there. You’re complaining about having to carry all these bags but you didn’t need to pack this much. Plus, we both know I’m gonna be the one lugging everything on and out of the car so why are you whining?”

”Oh Mingyu, my sweet, strong, tall man,” Jeonghan drones as he starts to doze off, “whatever would I do without you?”

Before he can fall asleep, the slapping sound of footsteps is back and Minjung vaults herself onto Jeonghan’s resting body.

The resounding _oomph_ gives way to loud laughter as soon as Jeonghan regains his breath.

Mingyu watches as the people dearest to his heart run to Minjung’s room. Apparently she roped him into helping her pack, which means Jeonghan indulges Minjung in packing all the things Mingyu would not let her bring. Mingyu sighs, knowing this means another heavy bag that he is going to have to lug around.

As he walks to Minjung’s room to try and stop them from packing every single one of her stuffed animals, he passes a picture of Sooyeon laughing with Minjung. For a long while, she was all Minjung had.

All he’s ever wanted was to bring her into a world where she would be loved and respected unconditionally. Mingyu hears Minjung and Jeonghan laughing and feels himself wanting to laugh as well.

Jeonghan might be a new addition to the family, but with the way things are looking, neither himself nor Minjung are going to let him go any time soon.

As he hears his daughter’s laughter ringing throughout the house he realizes he’s finally done right by her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well there we go!!! almost 6.5k for a fandom im not in but hey i hope i did these boys and their characters justice!!!


End file.
